PCOS and Endometrial Cancer Risk

Endometrial cancer is the form of uterine cancer that’s most commonly diagnosed. Women can be at higher risk for endometrial cancer for several reasons, including health conditions and lifestyle factors that can boost their estrogen levels. Polycystic ovarian syndrome, or PCOS, is one of those health conditions known to increase a woman’s chances of developing endometrial cancer.

Ovaries produce the hormone estrogen and the egg that is released monthly — a process called ovulation — during a woman’s reproductive years. PCOS is a condition of the female reproductive system that causes a bunch of small cysts, which are tiny sacs of fluid, to form on the ovaries. Women with PCOS typically don’t ovulate and have abnormally high levels of androgen hormones, often called “male” hormones.

Women with PCOS also have increased levels of estrogen and abnormally low levels of progesterone, another hormone.